The Democratic takeover of Congress has dashed hopes -- and eased fears -- that companies could soon be drilling for gas and oil off Virginia's coastline.

Prospects for offshore drilling, which seemed strong over the summer as gasoline prices soared, now appear to be on life support.

When the Republican-controlled Congress returns next month for a lame-duck wrap-up session, there is still a chance that a limited drilling measure could pass, industry observers said. Senate leaders of both parties continue to push for a bill that would open to drilling an additional 8 million acres in the Gulf of Mexico.

But a broader initiative led by House Republicans to give virtually all coastal states the option to drill off their shores is likely to go nowhere.

The mid-term elections that will bring Democrats to power in January ousted some key drilling proponents, including U.S. Rep. Richard Pombo, R-Calif., chairman of the House Resources Committee and a leading negotiator on drilling talks.

While Republicans focused heavily on drilling, many Democrats talked up the need for greater conservation efforts, including tougher automobile fuel efficiency standards.

The gas industry, too, acknowledged that any effort to end a 25-year federal ban on offshore drilling in most U.S. waters now appears beyond their grasp. That is why drilling supporters are now likely to rally behind the limited initiative for the Gulf of Mexico.

"The simplest thing to pass would be the Senate bill that focuses on the Gulf of Mexico," said William F. Whitsitt, president of the Domestic Petroleum Council, which represents about 15 natural gas and oil exploration firms.

The changed outlook comes as a setback to many Virginia lawmakers, who had pushed hard for the right to drill offshore.

Many saw the plan as a golden opportunity to boost the nation's energy supplies and reap new revenues for the state.

"I'm never going to give up on this," vowed Sen. John W. Warner, R-Va., a vocal drilling advocate who introduced his own legislation this year giving states the option to drill.

But with only days left for Republicans to complete their work for the year, Warner acknowledged there was little real chance of getting any drilling rights for Virginia in the near term.

Opponents, including environmentalists, say increased drilling would do little to meet the nation's energy needs while posing needless risks to marine life and beaches.

"You would assume with more Democrats it would be harder to pass a bill that opens up more of the outer continental shelf to drilling," said Bridget Walsh, deputy legislative director for Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fla., a drilling foe who won re-election this month by a lopsided margin.

The incoming House speaker, Rep. Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., could come to the aid of drilling opponents next year.

Even so, some House members continue to press for more drilling, particularly for natural gas.

"You have to look to the future," said Rep. Neil Abercrombie, D-Hawaii, a leading co-sponsor of a bill to open up the coasts. "All over the entire world, everybody -- everybody -- is pumping natural gas," he told CNBC last week.

"China is now doing it for Cuba, right off the coast of Florida. We're the ones that are falling behind," he said. "If we intend to be competitive in any way, shape or form in the future of this 21st century, we've got to tap our natural gas resources."

For the moment, drilling advocates say, their hopes are limited to the Gulf of Mexico, parts of which have long been exempt from the federal drilling ban.

"What I'm hearing from the folks in industry is, 'Let's take what we can get,' " said Virginia state Sen. Frank Wagner, who sponsored legislation in the General Assembly urging Congress to exempt willing states from the ban.

Wagner, a Republican, said he'll continue to push to open more of the outer continental shelf to drilling to help lessen U.S. dependence on Middle East oil.